Rourkela: The demand for unitary university status for the Sundargarh Government College got a new impetus with the joining of the hands of a large number of former students. The Old Students’ Association submitted a memorandum Friday to CM Naveen Patnaik on this issue. “The memorandum has all the valid arguments in favor of our demand. We are sure the government will seriously take up our cause,” said the president of the association, Dr Chirabrata Dutta. The former students assembled near the main gate of the college and from there they took out a procession till the DRDA Chowk. They reached the Sundargarh Collectorate and expressed their desire to meet District Collector Nikhil Gawali.
However, as Gawali was not present in the office, the former students handed over the memorandum to additional district magistrate Rabinarayana Sahu. The memorandum states that the college set up in 1958 is one of the oldest in Odisha. It said that the college is an educational destination for the tribal students of Sundargarh and nearby states like Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand. Students can join courses in the Arts, Science, and Commerce streams. The memorandum also said that students from coastal Odisha come to the college to pursue higher education in post and undergraduate courses. The college is also the nodal centre for IGNOU courses. The memorandum pointed out that the college has five hostels, three for boys and two for girls.
Currently, there are more than 1,000 students availing hostel facilities. It added that the college set up on 154 acres of land has the required infrastructure – a modern library and labs and a playground – to get university status. “We demand and the memorandum also mentions that the Sundargarh Government College should be declared as a ‘Tribal University’ in the interest of all,” said Dutta. It should be stated that here that a similar demand has been made to grant university status to Government Autonomous College in Rourkela. It also has the requisite infrastructure needed for university status.